Mayor not just blowing smoke about smoking ban

05:17 PM CST on Thursday, February 3, 2005

By Doug Miller / 11 News

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Houston Mayor Bill White wants to ban smoking at the dinner tables of the city's restaurants. He plans to ask City Council to strengthen the city's smoking ordinance -- probably within the next couple of weeks.

KHOU

"And those are the vegetables, right here. Your choice."

Sometimes when it's lunchtime, a lot of people who dine at the 59 Diner light up -- something fewer and fewer restaurants allow.

"Mashed potatoes and the dinner salad."

"Pretty soon it's gonna be where you can't even smoke in your own vehicle," complains Tony Whithorn, a smoker.

And pretty soon, Whithorn and others might not be able to smoke at the 59 Diner either.

"We plan to ban smoking in the dining areas of restaurants," said Mayor White. "That'll be a big step, a step forward in recognizing the rights of non-smokers."

The mayor also wants to ban smoking in Houston taxi cabs and at covered Metro stops for trains and buses.

But Houston's rules would still be less restrictive than the broad bans people see in other cities.

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Smoking would still be allowed in bars and in the bar sections of restaurants. And if a bar just happens to sell food, but makes more than half of its revenue on alcohol, smoking would still be allowed in the entire establishment.

Around restaurant tables, some smokers say the government should butt out.

"Pretty soon, it's gonna be like in these other states, where you can't smoke nowhere except your back yard," said Whithorn. "You know, I don't think that's a good idea."

"Smoking or non?"

But so many customers insist on non-smoking tables, a lot of restaurant workers like the idea.

"You know, they'll refuse a table. 'Oh, it's too close to smoking.' But I think, working here, it'll be good for us if the whole restaurant is non-smoking," said Trudy Green-Turner, a waitress who smokes.

And that could happen within weeks, if city council agrees to snuff smoking at restaurant dining tables.